Humanity of the Broken [ Band of Brothers ] 2

TWENTY-FOUR

March 4, 1945
Camp de Châlons, Mourmelon-le-Grand, France

Upon their triumphant and yet subdued return to Mourmelon, the Second Battalion and the rest of the 101st Airborne Division slept for almost a week. New ODs and dress uniforms were issued. The men got laundry done and made themselves more presentable. They shaved and cleaned themselves up, and then they just slept. And when they weren't sleeping, they were eating.

Alice spent her time doing exactly the same. She didn't see anyone other than at mealtimes for days. Half her time she spent taking warm baths and showers and half her time she slept or read books. Alice stayed in her room as much as possible. For the first time in nearly three months, she had a heated bedroom with its own bathroom. For the first time in nearly three months, she could truly rest.

Forty-eight hour passes were given to the men by Battalion. The 506th's First Battalion got theirs four days after their return to Mourmelon-le-Grand, and now the Second Battalion had theirs starting Saturday the fourth. Alice had only small plans. She wanted to go into Reims, grab a few drinks, take it easy.

She caught a truck after lunch. A handful of other men, none from Easy, joined her. She talked with two of the sergeants from Ron's old platoon, John Anderson and Alex Scott. They were good men, smart men. By the end they were all laughing.

It only took half an hour to get to Reims. The city, in the process of being restored from endless bombings it had endured, somehow still looked welcoming. As the truck came to a stop and the back was lowered, Alice followed Anderson and Scott down.

"You're here by yourself, Lieutenant?" Scott asked.

She smiled. "For now, yeah." Landing on the ground, she steadied herself. Her dress uniform didn't make movement too easy, but at least the new Ike jacket helped with that some. 

Anderson nodded. "Well, stay safe. We're just gonna hit the town, so if anyone causes any trouble let us know."

"Thanks, boys," Alice said, chuckling. "I really do appreciate it."

They strolled side by side with her into the city limits. Laughter and music could be heard from the streets. Anderson just laughed though, and shook his head.

"Captain Speirs would probably send someone after us if we didn't at least offer," he pointed out.

"You're not wrong," she agreed, grinning. "I understand Dog called him Sparky?"

Scott choked back a laugh. He exchanged a quick glance with Anderson. But when she laughed at the looks on their faces, he just nodded. "Among other things, yeah, but never to his face."

"That'd be a death wish," Alice agreed.

Anderson laughed as he chewed some gum. He nodded. "We owe him, though. Got us through a helluva lot. Damn good officer."

"Good ol' Killer," Scott added with a poorly suppressed snicker. "Crazy sonofabitch, but a damn good officer."

"Alright, well you two have fun," Alice said, grinning from ear to ear.

They told her the same and split to head towards the bars in the city. Alice had other plans. Wandering around the city, she relished the wonderfully pleasant March weather. Chilly but not freezing, the lack of snow and ice and rain had her smiling. With her Ike jacket, she was plenty warm. As she wandered through the town, Alice found a place to get her hair cut.

That became stop one. Having her hair back to shoulder length made everything better. With that done, Alice moved on to the shopping district. It took about an hour before she picked out a dress to send back to Millie, and a scarf for Madeleine. Adding a small toy for Percy didn't take long after that and before she knew it, Alice was heading to a bar for a couple drinks after a quick dinner.